Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt and Bobby Allison were among the first drivers inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

They were soon followed by Cale Yarborough, Darrell Waltrip and, most recently, by Rusty Wallace.

They each won championships and big races. But they all had one other thing in common — they were among NASCAR’s very best short-track drivers.

You don’t become one of NASCAR’s elite drivers without being able to win on the bullrings that separate the men from the boys.

Who was NASCAR’s greatest short-track driver?

That’s a tough debate, because NASCAR originated on short tracks, dirt ovals scattered throughout the South and then expanding to asphalt layouts up North and throughout the Midwest. In the 1950s and ‘60s, drivers raced two or three times a week and ran 40 or more races per year, mostly on short tracks.

As a result, Petty, Allison and other all-time greats won dozens of races on short tracks. Petty, for instance, scored 108 of his record 200 victories on short tracks. Drivers like Junior Johnson, Ned Jarrett and Bobby Isaac became racing legends on short tracks.

But in the modern era (1972-present), short-track races became tougher to win as new drivers emerged and superspeedways took over the Cup circuit. Nowadays, the best short-track drivers are not the ones who can win on any small track across the country, but the ones who can master such difficult ovals as high-banked Bristol, narrow Martinsville and the fast D-shaped track in Richmond.

Here’s a look at NASCAR’s best short-track drivers during the modern era.

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1

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Darrell Waltrip

When Darrell Waltrip burst onto the NASCAR scene, it didn't take him long to prove he was going to be a force on short tracks. His first career victory came at half-mile Nashville Speedway in 1975. A few months later, he won again at Richmond.

For the next 20 years, Waltrip wreaked havoc on the NASCAR field on short tracks, dominating nearly all the short ovals. Of his 84 career victories, 47 came on short tracks, including a record 12 at Bristol and 11 at Martinsville. He won six times at Richmond and won a total of 18 races at Nashville and North Wilkesboro before those tracks dropped off the circuit.

While Petty, Allison and Yarborough won their share of short-track races in the '60s, no one in the modern era has been able to match Waltrip's short-track dominance.

They all won their share of races on short tracks as well, but none was better than Yarborough.

Of his 83 career victories, 31 came on short tracks. And unlike his peers, all but two came in the modern era.

Yarborough’s talent and hard-nosed style was particularly on display at Bristol, where he won nine races, which is tied for second on the all-time list. He also won five races (six total) at Martinsville, three at Richmond and 12 at Nashville and North Wilkesboro.

3

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Dale Earnhardt

Earnhardt may be more famous for the short-track races he didn’t win — or the ones where he wrecked someone to win.

Earnhardt’s hard-charging, hard-nosed style was made for Bristol, where he won nine races and stirred up plenty of trouble. But he also won six times at finesse tracks like Martinsville and Richmond.

He also scored a pair of wins at Nashville early in his career and won five times at North Wilkesboro.

While he is perhaps better known for his high-speed skill, especially in restrictor-plate races, Earnhardt was equally as talented on short tracks, compiling an average finish of 9.0.

4

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Rusty Wallace

Cale Yarborough and Dale Earnhardt both won more short-track races than Wallace, but in terms of consistency, Wallace was as good as anyone.

Wallace was a threat at each of NASCAR’s short tracks, winning nine races at Bristol, seven at Martinsville and six at Richmond. He also had three wins at North Wilkesboro before it closed in 1996.

Wallace had some classic battles with Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon and others at Bristol, but he was almost always the driver to beat at Martinsville and Richmond as well. His average finish of 10.2 in 160 short-track races is one of the most impressive averages in the sport, besting Waltrip’s 10.3.

5

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Richard Petty

Though he was known for his speedway prowess, Petty actually won more races on short tracks. Of his record 200 wins, 108 came on short tracks. And Petty won everywhere, from Augusta, Ga. to Bridgehampton, N.Y.

Most of those wins came in the ‘60s, however. He won just 23 short-track races after 1972 and just twice at Bristol. The most staggering example of the change between the 50s and 60s and the modern era is Petty’s record at Martinsville. Of his record 15 wins there, just five came in the modern era.

He won six races (13 total) at Richmond and 10 (24 total) at Nashville and North Wilkesboro.

6

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Jeff Gordon

Like Waltrip and Wallace, Gordon immediately proved he could win on NASCAR’s short tracks. He won at Bristol in just his third season and added victories at Martinsville, Richmond and North Wilkesboro the following season.

Among active drivers, no one can match Gordon’s record on short tracks, where he has 16 career victories. He and teammate Jimmie Johnson both have eight career victories at Martinsville and Gordon has five wins at Bristol, two at Richmond and three at North Wilkesboro.

7

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Jimmie Johnson

Johnson also has compiled an impressive short-track record, but most of his wins have come at one track — Martinsville, where he has eight career victories.

Johnson has won three times at Richmond, but has just one victory at Bristol, where he has struggled at times over the years.

8

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Bobby Allison

Allison has 31 career short-track wins (32, according to Allison, but that’s another story). But like Petty, most of them came in the ‘60s.

In the modern era, Allison had just 12 short-track wins, six of them at Richmond. He won just twice (four total) at Bristol and, surprisingly, never won at Martinsville.

9

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Kyle Busch

At one point, it looked like Busch might surpass Gordon’s short-track total and challenge some of the all-time greats — and he still might.

He has been particularly impressive at Bristol, where he won five races from 2007-2011. He also has been dominant at Richmond, where he has four wins in the past few years.

10

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Terry Labonte

Labonte was known as the “Ice Man” for his cool demeanor but he could be as aggressive as they come on short tracks.

Labonte won nine short-track races and spread them across three tracks. He won twice at Bristol, and would have won a third time had Earnhardt not wrecked him on the last lap in 1999.

He also won three races at Richmond and four at North Wilkesboro, while compiling an average finish of 13.0 on short tracks.

11

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Kurt Busch

Before there was Kyle, there was big brother Kurt, the first of the Busch brothers to master Bristol.

Kurt dominated Bristol from 2002-04, winning four out of five races with Roush Fenway Racing. He added a fifth Bristol win with Penske Racing in 2006.

Kurt also has a win each at Martinsville and Richmond.

12

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Denny Hamlin

The newest short-track stud is Denny Hamlin, who quickly mastered the two tracks in his home state of Virginia. Hamlin has four wins at Martinsville and two at Richmond and is almost always a contender at those two tracks.

His 2012 win at Bristol solidified Hamlin’s status as the sport’s next short-track star.

13

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Mark Martin

Like Allison and David Pearson, Martin is known for his speedway prowess, especially on intermediate tracks. But he also has an impressive record on short tracks.

Of his 40 career wins, 29 came on big tracks, but he also added seven short-track wins, scoring on each of the shorter ovals and compiling a respectable 13.4 average on short tracks.

Martin had two wins at Bristol, two at Martinsville and one at Richmond. He even won twice at North Wilkesboro.

14

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Geoff Bodine

When he ventured South, Bodine quickly proved he could win on NASCAR’s short tracks. He scored his first career victory — and the first for Hendrick Motorsports — at Martinsville in 1984.

A former modified driver from Chemung, N.Y., Bodine won four races at Martinsville

15

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Kevin Harvick

Harvick has proven in recent years that he can win on any track and has piled up victories on a variety of ovals. But he has always been one of NASCAR’s best short-track racers, compiling an average finish of 13.6 — better than his average on any other layout.

He has been particularly strong at Richmond, where he has three career victories. He also has a win at Bristol and Martinsville.

16

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Tony Stewart

It’s hard to believe that Stewart, one of NASCAR’s greatest drivers, has just seven short-track wins — the same number he has on road courses.

Stewart has three wins each at Martinsville and Richmond but has struggled for much of his career at Bristol, where he has just one win in 2001.